In a Puff of Smoke:
A Pack a Day: The Costs

If you would like to have students work on math problem solving skills, this activity is a good one to choose. While the information supplied is about health and financial gain or loss, the questions are aimed at dimensional analysis skills. The questions can be solved, of course, without emphasis on dimensional analysis, and the resulting answers will still convey the same "no-smoking" message as if you had student use the more conventional dimensional analysis to solve them.

Answers to Questions

1. How many CDs could you buy every month with the money you save by not smoking?
   

   How many times could you go to the movies each month with the money you save?

   

   About how long would it take to save up (without interest) a $3000 down payment on a car?

   

   What is the cost per cigarette?

   

   How many cigarettes would you smoke each month?

   

   For that pack-a-day smoker who began smoking at age 15, how much money could he or she have saved for retirement at age 65 by not smoking?

   $1,299,329 (This number can be read directly from the table.)

   How many cigarettes would the pack-a-day smoker have smoked in 20 years?

   

   What will happen to all the numbers on the above chart if the cost of a pack of cigarettes increases over the years?

   All the values will increase. At a 3% annual increase, the cost of a pack of cigarettes will double in about 23 years.

   How many teenagers begin smoking each year?